ŠKODA pilot usher in new era for used car sales

26/10/2016

​ŠKODA is piloting a new approach to selling used cars to make the process more personable and more informative to customers.

The trial, which starts today at Willis Motor Company in London and lasts for three months, sees insight from previous owners used to help attract new ones. Anyone trading in and upgrading their ŠKODA will share information such as the car’s name, its personality traits and special family memories that it has helped to create.

These details will then be passed on to potential customers so they can get to know more about their new car than just its mileage and service history. If successful, ŠKODA will extend the programme across its entire retail network.

Research* conducted by ŠKODA to help shape the pilot found that a quarter (24%) of the British public think the used car industry needed a modern new approach. Of those surveyed, just 6% called it “fun” and 5% thought the sector was “innovative”.

Nick O’Neill, National Used Car Manager for ŠKODA UK, said: “Since the dawn of the automobile, the used car sales process has largely remained the same. However, as our research shows, many people feel that some change is needed.

“After buying a house, a car is the most expensive purchase that most of us will ever make. When you look round prospective homes, it can help to add appeal to a property if you see happy photos of the current owner and their family hanging on the wall. You understand that if someone can love it there, you can too. We’re applying a similar logic to the used car sales experience.”

Among the 2,000 British drivers that ŠKODA spoke to, almost a fifth (19%) described their car as “part of the family”, 40% said it had helped to create magical memories, and more than a third (36%) had given it a nickname. Nearly two fifths (39%) of the respondents said that learning more about their prospective new set of wheels from the previous owner would make the sales experience more compelling.

Dennis Willis, Proprietor of Willis Motor Company, said: “We’ve been selling used cars for more than 25 years, and I’ve seen first-hand the way that the relationship between owners and their cars has changed. People don’t just own a car now – they love it, it becomes part of them and their life. No one has done anything like this in the industry to reflect that shift: ŠKODA is breaking new ground.”

In an extension to the showroom pilot, all Willis Motor Group ŠKODA ads on Auto Trader, the UK’s largest digital automotive marketplace, will also provide the name the car has been given by its previous owner, the personality traits it exhibits, and the special memories it has helped to create.

Rakesh Patel, Commercial Director at AutoTrader, added: “In what is an increasingly competitive marketplace, it’s vital that car brands find more creative and engaging ways to target the right car buyers, at the right time; with the right message. This latest campaign for ŠKODA is a perfect example of how using our audience and creative solutions can deliver targetted, result-driven campaigns that also have scalability in mind.”

ŠKODA has announced pricing and specifications for the Kodiaq SportLine – the next exciting addition to the brand’s multi-award-winning SUV range. Set to deliver a sporting edge to the line-up, the SportLine model will be offered with six different engine and transmission options to provide customers with the broadest possible choice.

The ŠKODA Kodiaq has added to its remarkable collection of industry accolades with a new title: TopGear Magazine Family SUV of the Year. Having already been crowned one of the magazine’s Best Cars in the World in 2016, ŠKODA’s innovative seven-seater SUV has reinforced its reputation as the most complete offering in the sector with its 2017 title.

The independent European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP) has assessed the ŠKODA KAROQ. The compact SUV is the Czech car manufacturer’s latest model to receive the five-star rating, making the KAROQ one of the safest compact SUVs on the road today.

On course for a record once again: Together with its production partners worldwide ŠKODA AUTO has already produced one million vehicles this year, making it the fourth year in a row that the number of vehicles rolling off the production line has reached seven figures. Never before has this milestone been achieved as early as in October of a calendar year. The ŠKODA models OCTAVIA, FABIA and SUPERB have made the greatest contribution to this success. Additionally, the large SUV, the ŠKODA KODIAQ, promises further growth for 2017. The ŠKODA KAROQ will also provide impetus for growth. The company is currently introducing the compact SUV to the markets, thereby continuing its SUV campaign.

ŠKODA’s award-winning Kodiaq range is set to earn its badges with the arrival of a new Scout model. Priced from £32,330 and positioned between the SE L and Edition models, the Scout is the first new addition to the Kodiaq range since the seven-seater SUV arrived earlier this year.

Ordering for one of 2017’s most anticipated new arrivals – the all-new ŠKODA Karoq – opens today (Tuesday 3 October). Priced from £20,875, the all-new SUV sets new standards for value, comfort and equipment in what is one of the busiest and most competitive sectors of the new car market.